Situated at the Sahara’s gateway and at the foot of the Atlas, Ouarzazate is a regional capital with great socio-economic potential. Morocco wants to make it “the eco-tourism and sustainable Mediterranean capital”.

The flagship visible sequenced project, unifying landscape continuity, will benefit both locals and tourists. It intends to galvanize the city and its economy through an educational program. New professional training centers target promising activities for the region and will permit youth to reinsert themselves into the local economy.

The project is located within an ancient Draa’s tributary. A 3km long landscaped promenade connects the airport and the historical city center. It is sequenced by different public spaces adapted to the arid climate.

The walk is accompanied by a renewable energy supplied tramway and each stop will be a thematic showcase of the regional cultural know-how.

This sequence is organized around an aromatic public garden. Its scenography offers a variety of experimental pavilions and plots, giving rhythm to a sensory path. Each pavilion and each plot is managed by a student. Therefor students and visitors bound along the route.

Student housing make the urban transition between the dense avenue and the garden, enabling the pedestrian to join the path anytime. The traditional dwelling unit has been modified in order to create a new urban fabric, adapted to the local climate.

The wellness aromatherapy center is integrated in the garden’s route. A succession of plant-covered patios create the transition between public and private spaces.

The patio shaped building is adapted to its arid climate, creating natural ventilation and shadow. Its morphology is based on the traditional local architecture.

The aromatherapy center is divided in 3 sequences : pools, hammam and relaxation. The visitor wanders through the building and its exterior spaces, from an atmosphere to another. The ground floor is structured around the plant-covered patio. Pools ensure the continuity between interior and exterior spaces.

Local building materials like stone, wood and clay, are combined differently depending on the thermal atmosphere of each sequence.

The center is recognizable by its earthen domes and vaults, which shape the first floor rooms.